Styling Interiors With Desert Designs

I recently was tasked with helping style a room at the famous Eastern Province favorite, Desert Designs. Most people in Dhahran who like buying furniture know and love this store, but if you don’t, you have to visit. You can also check out the post I wrote about them!

So this styling project was an experiment to see if it was possible to take their traditional and tribal pieces, and breathe some new life into them. Basically, what could a person with a totally different sense of style do with their furniture?

I obviously was so honored that I was given this awesome opportunity, and I’m SO excited to show you how I made this space my own – without paint or changing the floors, and with what I had… well, in the store, that is  😉

This is what the space looked like before.

To be fair, this particular room on the second floor really wasn’t on anyone’s radar. It didn’t seem to have a purpose, so when I was told that a group of 4-5 women needed a cute space to drink coffee, I decided to make it into an informal living space.

This is how the room came together after swapping out some of the existing furniture…

Arm Chairs SAR 2490 (each)

Coffee Table SAR 2350

When I was trying to decide how to start this room, I pretty much just picked out the pieces that I loved in the store.

I started off with the blue/gray sideboard, that I’m obsessed with, the light wood cabinet, a pretty rug with shades of pink in it, and then found a few common themes between the 3 pieces to build upon.

My common color themes ended up being cream, light yellow hues, blues, silvers, and pink accents. I also made sure that similar wood types and stains stayed in one area – on one wall, or grouped in the seating area. I definitely don’t think that you need to stick to one type of wood stain in a room, but grouping similar pieces in specific parts of the room can help the space look more cohesive.

Silver Moroccan Sconces SAR 120-190 | Gray/Blue Sideboard SAR 3390 | Silver decorative Pot SAR 235 | Saudi Coffee Pot SAR 330 | Telescope SAR 159

Mirror SAR 1600 | Storage Chest SAR 2990 | Quilt SAR 590

Decorative Globe SAR 270

I also pay a lot of attention to “light” and “dark” areas. If a part of the room looks too dark or heavy with dark wood stains, I lighten it up with a light colored pillow or accessory and vice versa.

Metallic Candle Stand SAR 147 | Wooden Cupboard SAR 3550 | Head Dress Stand SAR 99

Lounge SAR 1450 | Decorative Pillows SAR 165+ (prices vary based on design)

I tried to pick up pillows with patterns if I couldn’t find the colors I was looking for. I’ve seen that sometimes patterns and textures can distract you from noticing that the colors in the room aren’t exact.

For example, you can pretty much get away with using colors that are quite bold and that people don’t prefer pairing together (like pink and orange in this room) since they’re being used in small doses (in a pattern) and not on big furniture pieces.

Tea Set SAR 420 (prices vary individually) | Ceramic Candleholder SAR 147 | Old Radio SAR 250 | Silver End Table SAR 420 | Magazine Rack SAR 280 | Telescope SAR 159 | Camel Saddle Stool SAR 690

I kinda love that overall this looks like a room I’d have in my own home. I really do believe that it’s possible to make a room reflect your personality and style if you put in things that you love, even if you don’t think that they’d work.

If you’re visiting Desert Designs soon, make sure to stop by the second floor to see the transformation in person 🙂 Stay tuned for more styling posts…

Happy Tuesday!